Scarfs are great styling tools everyone on a hair journey should have. Aside protecting your hair at night, you can purchase some chic scarfs to style your hair to work, church and other social events.
Gone are the days of the traditional scarf methods. Join Vannerella , WomanInTheJungle and MopTopMaven as they use scarfs to create contemporary styles.

Today's post brings out another common herb found easily in the market. It is mainly used in preparing soups and stews and has a very strong sweet aroma.

Description
Bay leaves are about 1 to 3 inches long and are oval with pointed ends. The leaves are shiny with dark green tops and are a lighter green underneath.For Dandruff
For the divas searching for a remedy for dandruff, use Bay leaf tea.Boil a quart of water, the remove the pot from the stove and add about 3 teaspoons of crushed bay leaves. Cover the pot and steep until cool. Pour some in the hair after shampooing and rinsing, and massage into the head for a few minutes. For best results, leave it in for an hour before rewashing hair.Each time you wash your hair you can use the bay leaf mixture as a soothing rinse that will help eliminate dandruff. Bay Essential OilAides in hair growth Provides dull, lifeless hair with luster and shine. Curbs dandruff problems.Bay Oil InfusionWash and dry all the leaves carefully.Put half of …

Most often, new naturals (newbies) tend to get confused with terms like "moisturize" in hair care. However, this difficulty is understandable since some naturals do not make the distinction clear enough. They may also not state what they use to moisturize and how they do it.
Simply put, there are two main moisturizers and thus two ways of moisturizing. There are Oil Based moisturizers and Water Based moisturizers.

Water Based MoisturizerWater is the number one ingredient on the list of ingredients.These include liquid leave-ins and products labeled as "moisturizers" which have water as the first ingredient.It adds water back into the hair to keep it moisturized. Oil Based MoisturizerOil is the first ingredient on the list of ingredients. For example Jojoba oil, Coconut oil.Used to seal in moisture: After co-washing or washing the hair, it stays wet for a while. To prevent the water from evaporating from the hair, it is best to seal it in. This is where an oil base…

It's quite interesting to see naturals abroad being bombarded with products and services from a large array of manufacturers and natural hair service providers. Can that be said of us in this our dear nation? When one goes to any cosmetic shop, it is easier to obtain products for relaxed hair. But if you need natural hair products, you might be lucky to get two or three at Makola Market or at well-known shopping malls.This scarcity can create frustrations in caring for the hair.

We are know that twists can never depart from a natural hair gallery of styles! But do you know there are a variety of twist styles you can wear? The traditional twists natural hair ladies wear have seen some serious overhauling. You don't need your usual two strand twists, try a banana twist for a change. Here's a tutorial on the banana twist by LaMonicaD

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BenefitsStimulates blood flow to the scalp and purges out toxinsMakes hair strongerShinier hair and less prone to breakingAlleviating dry hair and itchiness in the scalp area.For Hair GrowthA.
About an hour before bedtime, crush a garlic clove and rub the clove into the area of the hair loss. Leave the garlic juice on the scalp and then rub olive oil onto your scalp at bedtime. You will probably want to wear a shower cap to bed. Shampoo your hair when you wake up in the morning. Continue this routine for a few weeks.
orB.
Separate the garlic into cloves, then peel each clove and squeeze in a garlic press. Collect the juice in a small bowl, measuring until you get to a tablespoonful.
Mix honey into the garlic juice. Set the garlic/honey mixture in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.Garlic Oil Infusion
Boil water Peel the garlic and chop into small piecesAdd Olive oil to the chopped garlicPlace the mixture in the hot water for 30-45 minutesPick out the garlicRosemary…

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Debbie asks... In hair care, what do you use alata samina for?
Alata Samina is derived from the combination of two words: "Alata" which is a
reference to mainly the people of the
Hausa tribe and "Samina" from the Twi language meaning soap. Other names for this soap include: African black soap, Black soap, and Anago soap.

Ghana's Alata soap is the best quality black soap because it is the
ORIGINAL. Are we not blessed to have this in abundance? It is one of the cheapest product you can get from any market in Ghana!For Hair
Aalata Samina is used as a natural shampoo. This soap was what our great, great grandmothers used before the advent of the shampoos we know. It's the only soap in the world that does not require lye but lathers more than any other soap without the cancer-causing laurel sulphate.Liquid Black Soap
I soak the soap in water and leave it for hours to melt into a liquid state which makes it easy to use.

In the previous post, I Am Not Ghanaian?, I narrated a conversation with a guy with regard to natural hair and one's nationaliy. For today's post, the focus is one another topic that cropped up during our 2 hours drive to Accra. Read on.

Haven told the guy I was a Ghanaian, he went further to ask
another amusing question, "where do you fellowship? "Are you a Christian
or Muslim? I told him I was a Christian and he probed further, "which
denomination? I answered him and immediately asked him, "why?" He
replied, " I asked because of the way you were dressed. I wore a pair
of jeans with a blouse so I could not understand his comment. Then he
added, "I am surprised to see you in this outfit because the ladies I
know with natural hair do not wear these clothings". Ok! I got his
message; he was associating wearing natural hair with religious practices.

There are many christian and non-christian denominations in Ghana which requi…

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Deep Conditioners have an important place in retaining moisture. What happens when you want to use only natural deep conditioning products on your hair? You go to mother nature. Here are a few homemade deep conditioning treatments that can be done at home. See my Mango Deep conditioner treatment here

I decided to attempt a different method of stretching and styling my hair apart from banding method. On Friday, I bought my own set of brash rollers (other types will follow soon), took a mirror, hair clips, combs and did my own roller set.

Who says you can't roller set natural hair?
Unfortunately, I was in such a rush to church the next morning so I couldn't take pictures. However, I will have a second take and definitely give you the results. Have you roller set your natural hair before?
Emprezz

Description
Parsley belongs to the Umbelliferae family of plants with the Latin name Petroselinum crispum. The two most popular types of parsley are curly parsley and Italian flat leaf parsley. The Italian variety has a more fragrant and less bitter taste than the curly variety. There is also another type of parsley known as turnip-rooted (or Hamburg) that is cultivated for its roots, which resemble salsify and burdock.

BenefitsHealthy scalpsStimulates scalpel circulationActs as a hair conditionerHelps to balance the sebaceous glandsHeals any scalp problems and boosts hair growth.For Shiny Hair Boil water in a pot on high flame.Put the parsley leaves in this boiling water for 20 minutesPass this through the blender to get a smooth paste.Apply this paste on your shampooed and clean hair the way you would apply henna paste.Leave this on your scalp for 1 hour.Rinse off with water.Don't shampoo your hair again. Scalp Lotion
As a scalp lotion, parsley seed disinfects the scalp and stimu…

For this weekend, I share my wash day routine and hope it helps you. Products for Washing
Here are the products I use on a wash day (not co-wash day):
* Deep Conditioner (DC)
*Shampoo
*Conditioner
*Plastic/poly Bag
*Headbands
*Shower Cap*Wide Tooth comb/medium tooth combSteps In WashingI deep condition at the end of every month usually on early Friday mornings (for now). I part the hair into small sections using my fingers. For each section, I apply DC and secure the section with a head band. If I have to detangle, I use the
DC
as my detangler because it has some good slip. I detangle with my fingers first which helps to feel and get rid of knots easily. Then a wide tooth comb followed by a medium tooth comb.I then put on the poly/plastic bag and finally
a shower cap. After an hour, I wash out the DC, clarify with a shampoo, apply a conditioner and take my shower. When I am through, I rinse out the conditioner, scrunch (not rub) the hair with a t-shirt to reduce the amount of water…

If you've been wearing two strand twists, look beyond that and consider braid outs!!!.
Braid outs can equally be classified as protective styles because you don't manipulate your hair for days- you can switch up the styles too in a matter of minutes. The key thing about braid outs is allowing the hair to dry properly before unravelling the braid.

Braid outs aren't worn by only natural hair ladies; relaxed hair ladies can also wear braid outs. br0nzeqt and fgrogan create a braid out style that you can try on any hair type.

cause of their hair choice. Remember your own days!
Don't break up your friendship with your relaxed hair friends because friendship goes beyond hair choices. My best pal has relaxed hair. Never feel you're being more religious by sticking to your God-given hair texture. Religion entails your whole life. You might be natural but bleaching your skin. Being natural doesn't necessarily mean you're healthier than relaxed sisters. At least not when you still take "turkey tail" every evening.Don't consider relaxed ladies to be product junkies all the time. You might be more of the product junkie.Don't assume being natural means spending less time on hair care. Your hair might require as much attention as a relaxed hair. Being natural doesn't guarantee long hair. Genetics play a role in long hairYou wear protective styles and use hair dyes. Relaxed sisters wear protective styles and dye their hair. You can experience breakage and length retention proble…

A search through the net has revealed that herbs are useful in hair care. Some of the concerns of naturals in Ghana have been which herbs are available and where to purchase them. The series, Herbs In Ghana, has been created to address these problems. Today, the focus is on Rosemary.Description
Rosemary is a dark green herb with needle-like leaves and pale blue
flowers. It's native to Mediterranean areas, and the name means "dew of
the sea" in Latin. The official
botanical name for rosemary is "rosmarinus officinalis."It is a bushy type of evergreen that can grow six
feet or higher and the tree contains leaves that are stiff and
leathery. Rosemary has different uses but the concern here is on hair care. Check hairboutique.com for other usage.Benefits
This herb aids in:stimulating hair follicles for hair growth slowing down or even permanently holding off premature hair loss and gray
hair. clearing many cases of
…

What is the torture? AfroDiva shared her lock extensions in BAD HAIR DAY: GHANAIAN LOCK EXTENSIONS. Today, I share my terrible experience.
The stylist started the individual braids around 8 am and by 1 pm, the wrapping was started.
By the time we were through, it was already past 6 pm in the evening. When I asked the braider to dip the braids in warm water to reduce the stiffness, she bluntly told me it won't work for that braid! I had to leave but unfortunately, our dear Electricity Company did their usual thing; Blackout.
I got home and for the next hour, I began to feel pains in my scalp.
However, by 9 pm, I started feeling extreme pain around the edges such that I could not put my head on a pillow. I tried to sleep but could not lay down the head so I sat on the bed. When I could not take the pain anymore, I put half a bucket of water on fire to prepare hot water. I thought dipping the braid in the water will loosen it up. This was around midnight and all was quiet. I mana…

When it comes to our hair, the state of the weather determines the hairstyle you wear, the products you use and how you care for the hair during the day. In Ghana, except in the north, two rainy seasons occur, from April to July and from September to November. In the north the rainy season begins in April and lasts until September. Now, we are in the rainy season and styling can be tedious especially if you depend on "trotro" or "troski" (public transport).

Goel of completewellbeing.com gives the following advice for hair care during rainy season:The rain showers bring with them many pollutants. If rainwater touches your hair, it damages your hair shaft and weakens your hair in the process. If you do wet your hair in the rain, make sure that you wash your hair as soon as possible with a mild shampoo and condition after that. Do not leave the rainwater in the hair for long time as it is high in chemical contents and can damage the hair.
Washing your hair 2-3 times …

From my experiences and chats with my friends and fellow naturals, I've noticed four main assumptions about naturals in Ghana. To be natural means:You are a ForeignerYou are Poor You are Religious orYou are Uneducated
Today's post is about not being a Ghanaian if you have natural hair.
I once traveled from Cape Coast to Accra. On the bus, I had the opportunity to share a seat with a young man. The minute the bus took off, he struck a chat with me about my hair and wardrobe. The first question that popped up was "Are you a Ghanaian?" I asked him"why?" His first statement was "you don't look like a Ghanaian". This was not the first time someone had said that to me.

I inquired as to why he had that notion and the response was because of my hair! He answered,"you have the appearance of a Jamaican woman or Black American lady". I couldn't stop laughing. I am 100% Ghanaian from the central region of GH. He nodded but you could s…